In a tavern on Tortuga, the pirate Old Mommark recalls an adventure of his youth and tells a tale of an uncharted island, a great treasure, the gruesome Captain Scarlet and the even more gruesome monster that dragged him to his doom. But is it a true story or just sailor's yarn, spun under the influence of too much rum? This is a short story of 3800 words or approximately 14 print pages.

Once, Anjali Patel and Mikhail Grikov were soldiers on opposing sides of an intergalactic war. They met, fell in love and decided to go on the run together. Now Anjali and Mikhail are trying to eke out a living on the independent worlds of the galactic rim, while attempting to stay under the radar of those pursuing them. When they are hired to retrieve a shipment of bootleg medical nanobots, it seems like a routine job at first. But it quickly turns out that they are not the only ones who are after the nanobots. And their client has an agenda of her own. This is a story of 5100 words or approx. 20 print pages in the "In Love and War" series, but may be read as a standalone.

Anjali and Mikhail go on a Valentine’s Day date. Trouble ensues. Once, Anjali Patel and Mikhail Grikov were soldiers on opposing sides of an intergalactic war. They met, fell in love and decided to go on the run together. Now Anjali and Mikhail are trying to eke out a living on the independent worlds of the galactic rim, while attempting to stay under the radar of those pursuing them. It’s Valentine’s Day and so Mikhail and Anjali enjoy a well-deserved romantic dinner. But their date is rudely interrupted, when they find themselves caught in the crossfire of a turf war between two rival gangsters. This is a Valentine’s Day novella of 23200 words or approximately 78 print pages in the “In Love and War” series by Hugo finalist Cora Buhlert, but may be read as a standalone.

At first glance, the robbery in a small bank branch doesn't seem overly mysterious. After all, the CCTV footage clearly shows a masked robber threatening bank clerk Jim Carling with a gun before disabling the cameras. However, the robber knew a bit too much about the inner workings of the bank, so Detective Inspector Helen Shepherd quickly suspects that the robber had inside help. But who of the five bank employees is the insider? And what happened to Jim Carling after the robber took him hostage? This is a crime novelette of 9300 words or approx. 30 print pages altogether in the Helen Shepherd Mysteries series, but may be read as a standalone.

When two men dressed up as Father Christmas rob a London jewellery store and one of them ends up dead on the floor, shot by his own accomplice, it’s certainly one of the more unusual cases for Detective Inspector Helen Shepherd and her team. But as Helen begins to investigate, it turns out that the case is even more bizarre than she suspected. This is a holiday mystery novelette of 9300 words or approx. 30 print pages in the Helen Shepherd Mysteries series, but may be read as a standalone.

When supermarket employee Nelson Grant is found bludgeoned to death next to a half empty crate of bananas, the case seems a complete mystery. For Nelson Grant was well liked by his colleagues, so who could possibly want him dead? But then Detective Inspector Helen Shepherd and her team discover that the crate contained more than just bananas and the case suddenly acquires a whole new dimension. This is a mystery novelette of 12300 words or approximately 45 print pages in the Helen Shepherd Mysteries series, but may be read as a standalone.

Once, Colonel Brian Mayhew was the deputy commander of the Republican Special Commando Forces. But now he's gone AWOL to take out crime lord Rick Santerna, the man who murdered his family. Mayhew's quest for vengeance brings him to the rim world of Maciste, where he runs into his former protégé Mikhail Grikov, now wanted as a traitor and deserter for eloping with enemy soldier Anjali Patel. Mayhew knows that it's his duty to bring in Mikhail and Anjali. But with Santerna hot his tail, he finds that he needs their help. Mikhail and Anjali know that Brian Mayhew is a threat to their freedom and their new life together. But now they are faced with a hard choice. Should they risk their lives to help a man who could condemn them both to death or should they let Mayhew die in the Great Arena of Maciste? This is a short novel of 57000 words or approximately 200 print pages in the "In Love and War" series, but may be read as a standalone.